Report Asks How High Bears' Staffing Changes Could Go
By James Neveau ••
The Chicago Bears will likely make some serious changes to their team this offseason, but exactly what the team plans to do remains to be seen.
Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio posed an interesting question on the state of the Bears’ franchise, asking what’s on everyone’s mind: just how high will the changes go?
“Here’s something that could be a clue. Most of the non-playoff teams have commenced the process of negotiating with practice-squad players (on) futures contracts that can be signed after the regular season ends. As one league source explained it to PFT, the Bears haven’t.”
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Prosinski became the 16th player placed on I.R. by the team this season, and he was replaced on the active roster by offensive lineman Brandon Greene. The transaction means that all 10 players who started the season on the Bears' practice squad have now been elevated to their 53-man roster.
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Long’s season came to an end after the team’s Week 13 loss to the San Francisco 49’ers. Long has been dealing with ankle issues all season, but an arm injury finally spelled the end of the road for the lineman.
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Santos injured his groin during pregame warmups prior to the team’s contest against the 49’ers, and he was placed on injured reserve after the game.
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The Bears’ game against the 49’ers proved to be a costly one in terms of injuries, as the lineman was knocked out with a knee injury. The Bears placed him on injured reserve shortly after the loss to San Francisco.
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Irving was injured during a Bears practice prior to their game against the San Francisco 49’ers, and the knee injury he suffered will cost the rookie his remaining five games of the regular season.
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Floyd was having a strong season when he injured his right knee in a game against the Detroit Lions in early November. Floyd did damage to both the MCL and PCL ligaments in the knee, forcing him to be placed on injured reserve.
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Miller suffered a gruesome knee injury during the Bears’ Week 8 loss to the New Orleans Saints. Miller fractured his kneecap and suffered major artery damage, necessitating surgery to save his leg.
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Young suffered a triceps injury against the Packers in Week 4 of the regular season, and was placed on IR after the team’s loss to Minnesota in Week 5.
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Demps fractured his left forearm during the Bears’ Week 3 win over the Steelers.
Freeman, who led the Bears with 12 tackles in Week 1, suffered a pectoral injury and a concussion during the game, and was placed on injured reserve.
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White suffered a broken shoulder blade in the team’s loss to the Atlanta Falcons in week 1 of the regular season, ending his season prematurely for the third consecutive year.
Morgan was placed on injured reserve just before the start of the regular season, and the Bears have not publicly revealed what the injury was.
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Meredith tore his ACL during a preseason game against the Tennessee Titans.
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Scales suffered a knee injury in the Bears’ preseason game against the Titans, and was replaced on the roster by Andrew DePaola.
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Kush tore his hamstring during a training camp practice in early August.
Florio also discusses the chances of the Bears letting President Ted Phillips, but says it’s “highly unlikely” the team will take that drastic of a step.
The report does hint at the possibility of a power structure that would be similar to what the Cubs instituted following the 2011 season. They removed President Crane Kenney from all baseball decisions, hired Theo Epstein as a President of Baseball Operations, and Jed Hoyer as the General Manager.
A similar arrangement could be made with the Bears, codifying Phillips in a strictly non-football role and giving Pace a new boss with the organization.
